The Sixth Hokage
by Tama Saga
Summary: Oneshot. Betrayed by his best friend, Naruto is left with only one option to save the girl he loves.


_The rivalry between Naruto and Sasuke has been taken to another level. So has the romance between Naruto and Sakura._

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**The Sixth Hokage**

by TamaSaga

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Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I am merely borrowing ideas and characters to create a story that others will enjoy. In no way do I intend to make a profit off of this story.

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He was 18 now. And life was great. He had just left a party for Kakashi-sensei and was now at the bridge where his genin team used to meet occasionally. His girlfriend should be here soon.

"Get down Naruto, you're not a kid anymore.

"But Sakura-chan," Naruto whined as he kicked out leisurely while sitting atop the small bridge's railing. "I'm really comfortable."

He suddenly looked down and saw her small hand covering his own. "Uh..."

"Naruto," Sakura said with a sweet smile on her face before she placed her other hand on his chest. "Get down!" she forcefully scolded before she gave a harsh push.

Naruto fell backwards over the railing. "Waaah!"

∼ Splooosh! ∼

"You weren't supposed to push me!" A soaked Naruto shouted angrily as he stood up in the shallow creek.

Sakura just laughed...

...a laughter that sounded kind of like the rustling of a beautiful field of flowers to Naruto's ears...

...he paused for a moment to savor the sound...

...and then he scooped up a handful of water and threw it at her in one smooth motion.

-o-o-o-o-o-

The two soaking wet teenagers sat together on the railing, staring up at the slowly reddening sky. Naruto had a giant grin on his face as he glanced to the side.

"Do you remember when we used to wait at this bridge in the morning," Sakura tentatively asked, not yet realizing where she was sitting.

A vein appeared on Naruto's forehead. "Stupid Kakashi-sensei. Always late."

Sakura just grinned and kicked out a few times. "While we were waiting, you used to pester me all the time..."

"No I didn't!" Naruto loudly interrupted.

Sakura continued as if she hadn't heard him. "...for a date once the training was over."

Naruto growled.

"And then I'd say no...because you were oh so immature back then."

"No I wasn't!"

"You were! Admit it Naruto! Sasuke was..." Sakura suddenly quieted when she realized what she had just said.

"Sasuke..." the blond boy whispered.

The two sat in silence, a heavy feeling pervading the air.

"Those were great times, huh?" Naruto finally said.

"Mm...hmm..." Sakura murmured as she turned to him.

"Well, I'm done sitting around doing nothing." Naruto said as he leapt off of the railing.

Naruto?

"Let's get Sasuke back, Sakura-chan."

...

"We're strong enough now. Once we get him back, we can stand here together. You, me..." he paused, "...and idiot Sasuke-teme."

Sakura's fist suddenly lashed out. "Stop saying such mean things about Sasuke-kun."

Naruto crashed hard into the railing on the other side. His body slowly flopped limply to the ground. "Ow!"

Sakura had a hand over her mouth as she rushed over. "I'm sorry! I wasn't thinking."

She was about to heal the spot when she paused. There wasn't a bruise to begin with. "You big baby," Sakura finally said as she gently pried his hand away and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Does it hurt now?" She asked as she pulled away.

...Naruto held a hand to his cheek in wonder for a moment before he started crying even louder.

Sakura's eyebrow twitched before she held up a fist.

Naruto immediately shut up and backed away. His girlfriend was scary.

-o-o-o-o-o-

Naruto stood before Tsunade, waiting.

"Naruto, I have some great news." the blond female Hokage finally said, breaking the silence.

"?"

"I plan to retire soon..."

"What?!" Naruto demanded. "The old man was 3 times older than you and he didn't retire!"

"..."

"That's really old too, y'know."

"Naruto..." Tsunade sweetly said, a corner of her smile ticking dangerously.

"Huh?"

∗ Wham! ∗

"Shut up and listen!" She shouted before she stood up and took a moment to catch her breath. "I plan to retire soon, and I'm naming you as my successor."

"..." Naruto was speechless.

"..." Tsunade just waited for the news to sink in.

"Really?!" Naruto finally asked.

"Yes. But first, you need to do something. I suppose that was why you barged into my office in the first place?"

"Sorry I'm late." Sakura shouted as she hurried into the room. From the size of her pack, it looked like she was prepared for an extended mission.

Naruto grinned and turned back to the Fifth. "Baachan, we're going to get Sasuke back."

-o-o-o-o-o-

"Naruto!"

The group of 4, consisting of Kakashi, Sai, Sakura, and Naruto, paused and turned to the approaching group.

"We heard about your mission. Just say the word and we'll join you. Whoever you want," Tenten said, starting off.

"Yes, I am ready to offer what aid I can," Neji added from beside his female teammate.

"Yosh Naruto-san! If my eternal rival offers aid, then so shall I!"

"Get out of the way Lee! You're in the way." Kiba growled before he stood up. Akamaru gave a loud whuff from under him.

Who do you want me to kill? Anko lazily asked, drawing their attention. She was standing away from group, not because she was skittish, but because the others were wary of her.

Naruto looked around. "Hey, where's..."

"C'mon already," Ino bit out as she dragged Shikamaru toward the group. Chouji reluctantly followed after them. She finally stopped and smiled. "We made it in time. How can Team 10 help?"

"We're not genin anymore woman. And why are you deciding what we're doing?" Shikamaru complained. "So troublesome."

Chouji looked apologetic.

Naruto grinned at some of the greatest friends that he had ever made. Naah, guys. I appreciate the offer, but Team 7 was given this mission and we're going to pull it off.

"Heh, if anyone else said that, I'd be laughing my butt off. But then again, I wouldn't be offering to help either. Bring him back this time, or I'm going to glue you to the Hokage monument," Kiba commented.

"And once I bring him back, I'm going to watch you bow before me and praising me as the better nin."

"You?! Don't make me laugh."

Akamaru shook as well as he gave his own rumbling chuckle.

"Just get ready to worship me." Naruto irritably responded.

"I look forward to seeing the success of your mission then." Neji said.

"A-Ano..." Hinata quietly said. "good luck...Naruto-kun."

"Thanks Hinata-chan," Naruto said with a megawatt smile, causing her to blush and sway.

"Hey, that's my girl!" Kiba angrily said.

Meanwhile, not far off...

"Pig!"

"Forehead!"

"I didn't know that you cared." Sakura shot off.

"As if. I just came to let you know that I was going to polish your forehead and use it for a mirror if you die."

"Grr..."

"Sakura-chan! Let's go already!"

"Billboard!"

"Pig!" Sakura shouted as she pushed her nose up in the vague imitation of a pig.

"What are you looking at!" Both girls shouted together as they turned to the rest of the observers. The rest of their quickly found something other than the two girls to occupy their attention.

With no one to stare at them, the two females had time for one last act of immaturity. They blew raspberries at each other before Sakura turned around and ran after the group.

Team 7 left. Their destination was Earth Country, where the last known sighting of Sasuke had occurred.

-o-o-o-o-o-

They returned a week later.

And except for Sai, they all looked like hell.

Naruto glanced to the side. Sakura was sneaking frequent glances at the newest member of their group, but she steadfastedly held his arm over his shoulder and made no attempt to approach their fifth member.

His whole body screamed at him, and he felt pain in areas that he didn't even know he had. But he felt great. They had succeeded, like there was any doubt, and Sasuke was finally with them again. It had been a great battle and he couldn't wait to return to tell the others what had happened.

The group continued to limp home, Kakashi supporting a calm Sasuke, Sakura supporting Naruto, and Sai bringing up the rear, observing the reactions of his team members.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"This is taking forever!" Naruto complained. "Just put him on probation or something."

Sakura put a finger to her lips. "Shh..." she hissed as she peeked around the corner.

Two elite Jounins stood on either side of a large door, guarding the entrance from eavesdroppers and attempted entry.

Inside, the most powerful members of Konoha, politically of course, were debating what to do with the calm looking man in the center, Sasuke.

-o-o-o-o-o-

Tsunade came out an hour later, an angry look on her face.

Fearing the worst, Naruto quickly ran up to her. He was knocked back.

Undeterred, Naruto ran after her.

"I won't let them kill Sasuke," he blurted out. "Not after we worked so hard to bring him back."

He chased her into the Hokage's office. The door slammed shut before Sakura could enter.

"They're not," Tsunade growled before she plopped herself down into her seat

Naruto stared wide-eyed at the act of violence. "Oh." he finally managed to say. "Then what's going to happen to him."

"He's going to become the Sixth."

"That's great. That's...what? What?!" he hollered angrily. "That's my spot!"

"That's what I said."

"Then..."

"He's going to become the Sixth." Tsunade repeated.

"No!"

"Yes."

"But..."

Tsunade put a hand to her head. She had a severe headache. "Brat, get lost now."

Instead of disappearing, Naruto slammed both hands onto her desk. "You could've done something!" he shouted in exasperation.

A brief flash of anger passed across Tsunade's face. That was all the warning that Naruto had before a tremendous crack broke through the air. Papers flew everywhere as the desk split in two from Tsunade's fist.

"Brat, it's not too late to decide," Tsunade said in an eerily calm voice to the cowed man in front of her. "Do you want Sasuke to die?"

"What?!"

"I can go behind the Council's back and have Sasuke branded a traitor," she explained before fixing him with a piercing look. "The penalty will be death."

"But...

"If you want this spot so much, this is the sort of decisions you will have to make. THIS..." she paused for a moment, "...is the only decision that I can make with the cards that I've been dealt. Now I ask again, do you want Sasuke to die?"

"..."

"I'm waiting!" she demanded impatiently.

"...No! There's got to be another way!"

"There isn't. If you don't want Sasuke to die, I have no choice but to accept their decision. I cannot go against the council on this matter. If he doesn't die early, Sasuke is going to become the Sixth."

What about-

"The council refuses to consider you as my successor. They believe that the seal has weakened to the point that YOUR tenant has a foothold in your mind."

"That's..."

Tsunade read his mind. "Don't you think I tried to correct their misplaced perceptions?"

"I can-"

"You can't. Jiraiya was called in, and then they tore him to shreds. Not with logic, but denial."

"Maybe-"

"No. Whatever good deeds you've accomplished are in the past. They will treat it as such. Even your recent mission to retrieve Sasuke will be considered irrelevant. It will not work and this discussion is over. Decide!"

"But..."

"What do you choose brat," Tsunade forcefully demanded.

"...can you give me a day to decide?"

Tsunade kicked a half of her desk and stood up. "This, now, is your only chance, brat. Pick!"

The room was silent for the longest of moments, but Naruto's answer was clear.

"So that's it. It's because of the council that I'll never become Hokage," Naruto finally growled out as his bangs shadowed his face.

Tsunade bent down and started to pick up the scattered paperwork, pretending to look busy to avoid answering the question. But the answer was clear.

"Dammit!" Naruto shouted as he kicked the other half of the desk.

-o-o-o-o-o-

Sakura was waiting outside.

"Naruto, I...heard. Everything will be fine, just because you won't be Hokage..."

A hand flew to her mouth at her verbal gaffe.

"Naruto...I didn't mean...," she suddenly started to laugh. A weak laugh that spoke volumes about the awkwardness of the situation. But that didn't matter, because if there was anything that Naruto possessed, it was a sense of humor.

Instead of laughing with her, Naruto just stared at the pink haired girl. An angry look appeared on his face.

"Give me back my necklace."

"...what?" Sakura finally asked, confusion on her face.

"I've finally figured it out. You're just using me aren't you."

Sakura looked around before she realized that she was the only one in the hallway. There were several eyes peeking around the corners, indicating that they weren't alone. But Sakura didn't care. "What are you talking about?!" She demanded, bewildered by his actions.

"You hate me."

"I love you!" Sakura responded. "We've said it many times. Don't you remember that moonlit night? Why would I care if you're Hokage or not?"

"You're just pretending to be my girlfriend so that once I become Hokage you'll be the second most powerful in Konoha." Naruto countered.

"I-that's...no. No no!" Sakura stammered as she struggled to figure out why Naruto was acting like this. "I love you!" she shouted for everyone to hear.

A pained expression appeared on Naruto's face for a split second, giving Sakura a spot of hope. Then Naruto spit on the ground. "No you don't. Give it a day, then you're going to walk up to me, tell me that you've finally hooked up with Sasuke, and then you'll laugh in my face."

"What?!" Sakura shrieked. This was so absurd. What was wrong with him?! "I wouldn't do that!"

Naruto suddenly started laughing. "Yeah? 10 years ago, you showed me a bar of chocolate. I thought you were giving it to me. Then you snatched it from me, opened it, and finished the entire thing before laughing and running back to your friends."

Surprisingly, Sakura didn't defend herself by saying '_this is different.'_ Instead, she stammered "I-I-Th-That's a lie!" Because even though her childhood memories were foggy, she knew that Naruto was lying.

"Is it? Is it?!" Naruto demanded.

"Yes!" Sakura insisted in an equally loud voice.

"No it isn't!" Naruto denied, pleased to see that the crowd was growing.

She reached out to him. "Stop, please. Naruto." she pleaded. They could work through this. They just needed a little time.

He shoved her away. "Go back to the Uchiha you traitorous ∗∗∗∗∗"

Sakura crashed into the wall before she fell in a heap.

Naruto paled. "...Sakura-chan?" He took a tentative step forward.

Sakura suddenly sat up and, with an angry shriek, jumped up and slugged him. Naruto broke right through the wall. You...you...how dare YOU! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" She shouted, shaking wildly. However, instead of destroying him, she ran off, but not before ripping the necklace off and throwing it at him.

The crowd started to disperse.

When she was out of sight and sound...Naruto painfully pulled himself in through the new hole in the wall with one hand while the other clutched his jaw. There was a crestfallen expression appeared on his face.

He stared at the necklace that was lying innocently on the ground.

Giving himself a mental pat on the back for the acting skills that he had developed over a lifetime of use, Naruto slowly picked up the necklace...

It was for the best. He was never going to be anybody...Sakura-chan deserved better.

...At least with him out of the way, she could return to Sasuke bastard.

_Dammit._

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Epilogue:

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"No..." Sakura whispered.

"I've already dispatched the ANBU to find him," Tsunade sighed as she played with her brush. "But you know how Naruto is when he doesn't want to be found."

She looked up when her ex-apprentice didn't say a word. Sakura was gone.

-o-o-o-o-

"Ino-pig..." Sakura desperately called out.

"If you want to apologize, forehead," Ino crassly replied, "he's not here." She pointed for the door. "Now get lost."

-o-o-o-o-

"Hinata!" Sakura yelped after someone collided with her and sent her to the sprawling to the ground.

"You shall address me as Hyuuga-sama," the white-eyed woman coldly said before an unknown emotion flashed across her face. Her face hardened again. "I cannot believe you would treat Naruto-kun in such a manner."

"But..."

"Give it up Haruno-san. He is not here. I would be far happier if it had been you instead." Hinata quietly said before she stiffly turned around and walked off.

-o-o-o-o-

Sakura entered the hospital room. "Kakashi-sensei!"

Kakashi looked up, and his eye became a smile. "Ah, my cute student. Have you come to check up on me?" he held up a bandaged arm in a teasing manner.

Sakura shook her head no and opened her mouth to speak.

"I thought that you had gotten over Sasuke years ago." her ex-sensei interrupted. "Guess I was wrong."

"But I..."

"I know." Kakashi interrupted again before he calmly flipped a page, "But that's not going to bring Naruto back, is it?"

A brave smile appeared on Sakura's face. "It's only temporary. He'll be back soon. I know he will!"

There was no reply.

-o-o-o-o-

Tsunade looked up when the door slid open. Upon seeing who it was, she slowly shook her head no.

"Oh..." if it was possible, Sakura's already depressed face looked even sadder.

A month had passed already, and there was no sign of Naruto.

"You have to do something." Jiraiya said as he appeared from out of nowhere when Sakura left the room in a dejected state.

"What can I do about it?" Tsunade growled as she set down the document that she was holding and turned to address surprisingly-healthy man. "I don't know where the brat is at the moment. And even if I did, I couldn't just send her to see him. He'd disappear."

"I've been watching her for the past few days. She hasn't been eating or sleeping lately. If this keeps up, she will die."

"Don't you think I know that?!" Tsunade snapped angrily. "Their last argument is eating her alive. And there's nothing I can do. I can't make her to drop it and genjutsu will destroy her already-fragile mind." She rubbed her temples for a moment before glaring at her former teammate. "Is stalking my former apprentice all you can do? Don't you have a bathhouse to go to?"

A lecherous grin filled Jiraiya's face. Even dying couldn't hold him back from his life's mission.

He was promptly ejected from the tower courtesy of Tsunade's fist.

"I thought so," The aging woman said as she sat down and cracked her knuckles. The temporary stress-relief from sending the pervert flying was quite satisfying.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"You should eat," Shizune pleaded as she held out a tray of sliced fruit for Sakura to take.

The glassy-eyed girl started when the cold metal tray touched her skin. Eyeing the tray for one long moment, she reached down and picked up an apple slice before raising it to her lips and mechanically biting into it.

Someone entered the room.

"You're lucky to be alive. You know that?" Tsunade calmly said as she picked up a nearby clipboard and eyed the medical report. Sakura had started choking on a godforsaken piece of lettuce and no one had moved to help. As a medic-nin, it should have been easy to remove the obstruction, but Sakura didn't even try. If it hadn't been for Jiraiya, the girl on the bed would be in a funeral casket instead.

"Shi-shou," Sakura whispered.

"Sakura, forget about Naruto." Tsunade ordered. "He's not coming back."

"..."

"Don't you understand? He's an S-ranked missing nin. He's to be killed on sight if he were ever found."

"..."

Tsunade finally sat on the bed. She looked at Sakura from over her shoulder. "I can see that I'm not getting through to you." She sighed before she withdrew a rolled-up scroll and tossed it at Sakura.

That prompted a reaction from the pink-haired girl. She looked up at her mentor for an explanation.

"You now have the Hokage's permission to leave Konoha for three years. Wander around, heal some people, mend some bones, make a difference or something. Once you leave these walls, there should be nothing to remind you of Naruto. I expect you to have forgotten about him by the time you return."

Some life seemed to appear in Sakura's eyes.

"And don't even think about trying to find him, or the permission will be rescinded and I'll have you forcefully brought back in chains."

The green eyes slowly dulled again.

"One more thing." Tsunade said as she started to walk out. "I've asked the pervert to look after you to make sure you eat and sleep properly. He accepted."

-o-o-o-o-o-

Jiraiya crept into Sakura's hospital room.

"Come on girl. Let's go." the old man whispered.

She didn't move.

"Come on. Your luggage is packed. You just need to get up and follow me."

Still no reaction.

Jiraiya sighed and decided to pull out the big guns. "I've known Tsunade for years. In that time, do you think she's ever stopped me from being a pervert. I mean, don't get me wrong...I'll make sure you eat and sleep. But I'm not going to report you should you happen to do something...illegal."

Sakura blinked before she slowly turned her head towards him.

"Let's find the brat."

-o-o-o-o-o-

A month later, Tsunade calmly walked into a bar. She ignored the wolf whistles as she headed for a table hidden in the back.

"You can return to Konoha now." the blonde woman casually said as she took a seat in front of the lone figure.

"Baachan?!"

"It's funny how I was the first one to find you." She looked around for a few moments. "This is ironic," she wryly said before holding up a few poker chips. "Deal me in."

"..." Naruto was stunned speechless.

Tsunade sighed. "Are you going to keep an old lady waiting?"

Naruto quickly pulled a deck of cards out from his pocket and began shuffling them. "W-What do you mean that I can go back?" He started to pass out the cards.

"Now that the Uchiha is the Sixth, and the council has been replaced by your friends, everyone knows the truth." Tsunade picked up her hand before she continued.

"You're not an S-ranked missing nin anymore, although the ones on the council aren't very happy with how you handled the situation in the first place. Still, they're more than willing to make you the Seventh. And the Uchiha didn't want to be the Sixth in the first place. So the spot's ready for you once you return." She looked at her hand and frowned.

Naruto looked up from his hand. "How's Sakura-chan?" he tentatively asked.

"If you're asking whether she's with the Uchiha, she's not." Tsunade removed several cards from her hand and replaced them with cards from the stack. Her frown deepened.

Confusion appeared on Naruto's face. "What do you mean?"

"The only one that she's been thinking about is you. Even now, I believe that she only thinks about you."

"That's...great." He finished lamely, too surprised to exhibit enthusiasm.

"It's not."

"What?"

"You hurt her brat. You're well-meaning performance destroyed what friendships she had and nearly cost her her life."

"What? No! I didn't mean-"

"No you didn't." the former Hokage sniped back. "But I guess Jiraiya didn't teach you as much about strategy as I would have liked."

"She's okay though, right?" Naruto asked as he set his cards down. All cards of the same suit. A flush.

"I don't know." Tsunade quietly said as set down her cards and stood up.

Naruto started. "You don't know?"

Tsunade ignored him. "Straight flush. I win. Return to Konoha." she said, leaving no room in her words for him to argue. "She's not there, but she will return eventually. You'd better be there when she does." With that last threat, she left the bar.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"Where's is she?" Tsunade asked as she turned around and waited for her stalker to catch up. Now that she wasn't the Hokage anymore, she had no reason to stay in Konohagakure.

"Where else?" Jiraiya said with an enigmatic grin before he looked around. "I don't see your cute apprentice anywhere."

The blonde's eyes narrowed. "You never learn, do you?" the irritation faded away as quickly as it came. "How is she?"

"Better." was the gruff reply.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"Naruto..."

Naruto turned around. "Sakura-chan?"

But the pink-haired girl was rummaging through her knapsack. She soon pulled out a bar of chocolate and held it out to her ex-boyfriend. "Here..."

"Ah, No..." Naruto started to refuse.

But Sakura would have none of that. "Take it!" she angrily said before she jammed the entire bar into his mouth, wrapper and all. Before Naruto could say a word, she promptly uppercut him.

"There's your stupid chocolate bar! I hope you're happy now." she cried out before tears started to form in her eyes. "You stupid idiot! I loved you! I didn't care if you were never going to be Hokage! I didn't want Sasuke-kun! I just wanted us to be together." She broke down crying.

Naruto painfully sat up and moved to hug her.

But Sakura promptly slapped him before he could try, causing him to spin once in midair from the force of her blow. "Get away from me!"

-o-o-o-o-o-

Can Naruto rekindle their relationship? Pass or Fail, that's another story.

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A/N:

Naruto with a noble complex ala Harry Potter.

This is one of those commonly done "Naruto disappears from Konoha," but with the same twist that grimstrife used in his story "The Nameless Hero". e.g. The council wants Sasuke to be the Sixth, and this pulls the rug right out from under Naruto's feet. The big difference is that Sakura is not a retard.

I don't think Sakura will forgive Naruto. That is...if he tries to do it alone. If he has help, that's another story.

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Acknowledgements:

Epilogue courtesy of **Starfire99**'s review.

Expanded Epilogue courtesy of **Metrios**'s review

In answer to **hillwise**'s review, Sasuke went 'Hn.'


End file.
